


Double-Grazing

by Weabz



Category: K-pop, SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Enemies to Lovers, M/M, MafiaAU, Vampires, mafia, slowburn, vampireau
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-08-14
Updated: 2018-08-29
Packaged: 2019-06-27 07:53:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,497
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15681195
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Weabz/pseuds/Weabz
Summary: All Yoon Jeonghan has ever wanted since starting his window salesman career is a company car. It has been ten years and despite being the best-selling employee this quarter and winner of 'Employee of the Year' for three years in a row, he is still yet to achieve this one goal. What happens when his colleagues dare him to pursue the biggest window sale in company history only for him to end up messing with the wrong guy?What happens when Yoon Jeonghan manages to swindle mafia boss Choi Seungcheol?





	1. One

“Sir.”

It was a call that went initially ignored, words carried away with the wind, left to rot alongside the many victims before it - but all whom had gathered in that room could feel the faint presence of it there – left hanging in the tense atmosphere. Three figures lay cowered on the ground, hands braced loosely around the backs of their heads and knees shaking in brief periods as if to mirror the tensing and relaxation of their strained hands. The figure whom had rudely interrupted the questionable scene lay quaking himself, fingers a painful white where they gripped tightly onto the amber door knob and legs frozen in a somewhat uncomfortable stance – one foot lifted just shy of the ground and the other firmly planted into the Peruvian fur rug which covered the expanse of the mansion home. The room was in no means small, perhaps just larger than an average classroom however every man could feel the creeping terror of claustrophobia upon their necks; each could feel the humid wetness of their fellow man’s breath and not one of them would dare take another step over the line they had long since crossed.

The painful atmosphere that had arose within this office could be attributed to only one man – Choi Seungcheol. Being a famous celebrity of the underworld, ‘Sir’ Seungcheol was truly a man to be feared. To authorities, he was little more than a wild myth conjured into the world by a few insignificant gangs that had been unfortunate enough to be caught but to those same gangs, Seungcheol was the one who had successfully orchestrated the entire stick up, Seungcheol was their enemy and yet everything they wanted to be.

All was silent throughout the room, the only sound being that of distant voices and the cluttering of dishes from down below. Not one person dared glance in the boss’ direction and, for several minutes, it remained that way.

Suddenly, as if played through a microphone, a crisp and distinct squishing sound was heard and all eyes locked firmly onto the butler. Meeting eyes with one of the men, the butler flashed a coy smile, his front leg now notably the same as his back which was, of course, in contact with the fur rug.

The attention was quickly robbed of him, however, as three large encyclopedias crashed to the floor - the harsh impact of which causing some of the many papers that cluttered the room to rise up in its wake. The Butler, accompanied by the group of unfortunates on the floor, visibly gulped as they instinctively raised their eyes to meet those of the man who had conducted such a display.

“You’ll have to excuse him,” the culprit started, “he’s new. Still being trained, actually. God knows how long a dog must be corrected before it learns how to behave.” He smiled, then, raising his thick, black, scarred eyebrows in expectation at his guests- his grin only growing wider as they followed his example with queasy tight lipped grins of their own, as if they’d smelt something terribly foul at a dinner date but neither party could care to address it and Seungcheol loved it.

Relaxing his face, Seungcheol then rounded his mahogany desk at which he was originally sat and came to lean at the front of it, his hands outstretched behind him and his left leg crossed over his right, a certain refined elegance about him which many trained actors would fail miserably to recreate. Clasping his calloused hands together, he stated quite curtly, “That will be all, Seungkwan” and with the swift wave of one heavy, bejewelled hand, Seungkwan was gone and once again a suffocating silence retuned to the office.

\----                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                          
“Seungkwan?” a voice questioned, catching sight of a figure clothed in a patterned cream suit crouching down suspiciously next to the Boss’ office door, his ear pressed flush against it.

“For God’s sake Seungkwan, what are you up to now?” Vernon half whispered, half shouted as he approached the figure, staring down at the pretty doe eyes that met his.

“Shhh!” Seungkwan hushed, forefinger pressed harshly to his reddened lips and eyebrows scrunched up pointedly as his eyes darted towards the closed door. Although silent, Vernon immediately understood. Seungkwan had messed up.

Again.

Afraid of making any more noise, either in consideration for Seungkwan’s life or to in fear of hurting any chances he had with said man, Vernon joined Seungkwan on the floor and did as he was instructed to.

With both heads pressed against the heavy oak door, they listened to the distorted conversation that occurred within. Originally it had sounded somewhat reminiscent of a polite conversation between friends, the only flaw being the usual irritable demeanour of their Boss and the pitiful sound of three foreign voices whom tried desperately to defend themselves against the allegations presented to them. Seungcheol’s sweet honey-laced words quickly fermented as time progressed, becoming foully sour and spiked with bite. The two servants outside shared a look, both communicating that something profoundly wrong was about to happen and that neither wanted to be there to witness it. Seungkwan grinned, pointing to the door and then to them in a sort of handsy mess as if to suggest that they were lucky to, in fact, only be hearing it and not seeing it for here they had the impressive architectural sturdiness of a brick wall to protect them against whatever that mad dog had in store. Vernon simply sighed, rolled his eyes and held back his shriek as Seungcheol interrupted their wordless conversation, his voice ringing out particularly clearly and authoritatively in his next statement:

“Friends, forgive me, but I was under the assumption that I had called you here for an explanation,” he began, calmly with a touch of aggression before letting his voice rise, “not to hear you squabble among yourselves as to why you won’t eat your greens!”

“I am not your mother nor am I your friend - I will not play fool to your stupid excuses and baby you as if you were anything more than pawns on my chessboard!” he breathed, frustrated and mentally exhausted, “I am the king of this world, higher than the police, the military, the government. You think I won’t get rid of you? You think I won’t let my other ‘pawns’ do whatever they want with your family? Let them repeat whatever you’ve done to all the families we’ve collectively ruined? You’ve got me on my last thread here. Tell me exactly what happened, word for word as a good employee is meant to or I’ll think of something worse than that.” he heaved, gasping for air as if he’d ran (and won) a marathon.

“T-T-Tao of the Huangs came to the dock to pick up the cargo, as he was meant to, he met with our division and watched as his own ship docked and began to load the shipping containers.” a quivering voice spoke out, sparing Seungcheol all the unnecessary bullshit. “When everything was loaded, our leader went to shake his hand and seal the transaction but, as you know, the Huangs opened f-fire on us before our leader could get close. In minutes m-most of our division was either dead or dying. S-Something must’ve happened then, as T-Tao suddenly called them off and they retreated back to their cars, driving off to God knows where. We sent the least injured to chase after them but they were long gone by the time they were on their feet.” they huffed, the last words coming out rushed and poorly pronounced.

Something large and heavy suddenly crashed to the ground creating a great ‘bang’ on the floor beneath it followed by a brief fluttering as, one would assume knowing their Boss’ office, some papers had been startled by the quake.

“Do I look like a fool to you?” he asked through gritted teeth, panting from exertion, “Huh?!” he emphasised. A series of rushed footsteps arose from the room but were quickly halted by a short, shrill scream.

“Ah shit, you’re giving me a damn headache. Listen, will you?” he breathed, voice soft as he attempted to calm himself down.

“It’s late, already. I’m tired.” he paused, “I haven’t felt like this in a long time.. it reminds me of a time when my parents were still alive.. at times like this my father would tell me time and time again that the ugliest kinks in one’s personality come out when they’re mentally and physically tired – this was, of course, only a way in covering up his own abusive behaviours, perhaps my mother’s alcoholism as well.” he chuckled, “Oh, don’t look at me like that. This isn’t some evil villain monologue.” he smirked, “no, I’m beyond mentally ‘tired’, thanks to your pitiful arguments. That leaves your saving grace down to my strong and masculine body – you must be thankful for my less than rigorous exercise regimen.”

Seungkwan looked up from the door, making eye contact with Vernon as he mouthed something along the lines of: “What a fool” whilst, despite his efforts to stop, fought to hold back incessant giggles. Vernon smiled, adoring the way the boy’s eyes sparkled in that moment. He excitedly leaned forward to reply, holding the gaze Seungkwan was supplying and quickly causing all thoughts about his Boss’ body to disappear from his love torn mind as he became hopelessly lost in those same eyes that had enslaved his heart. He could hear that same organ beat loudly in his ears – erratic like the flashing neon lights of a rave yet so still – as if it were one of Tom Jones’ romantic slow songs. He became completely lost in that moment and, if his eyes were faithful to him, he could see Seungkwan doing the same. He cringed, knowing it was be villainous for him to do so but hoped so dearly that he could forget his morals and just reach out and touch those sweet, plump-

There was a sudden snap, just soft enough to go unnoticed by the two mischievous servants but was quickly overshadowed by the long, painful, blood-curdling scream that ripped through the mansion, startling the boy from his fantasy. Painful, heavy sobs soon followed in addition to several heavy retches that slipped from the misery-struck room.

Seungcheol’s voice spoke over the cries, it’s tone apathetic, “My mistake, it seems all this ‘running in circles’, if you will, had caused me to overestimate my own physical condition. It seems, that I am - in all sense of the word – exhausted.” he chuckled, “Oh! Would you look at that. It’s time for breakfast. I’ll have my men take care of the rest.”

Hearing their Boss’ heavy footsteps just beyond their protective brick wall barrier, Seungkwan and Vernon scrambled to their feet before sprinting quickly down the corridor and into Vernon’s room (the closest of the servants’ to the office) and, when Seungcheol exited, snapped pool cue in one hand and crimson stained table cloth in the other, he was none-the-wiser to whom had eavesdropped on his important ‘business’ conversation.

Under the assumption all was well, the two went in for a celebratory high-five, grinning ear to ear as they bathed in the miraculous success of their cheeky escapade. As they could just feel the heat radiating off of each other's palm, as they were just millimetres from skin meeting skin, Mingyu’s cold, mono-tonal voice rang authoritatively throughout the corridor:

“Seungkwan, Sir is asking for your presence within the drawing room to be accounted for in exactly five minutes, he also asks you bring that certain ‘scoundrel’ with you. Don’t be late.” Mingyu turned and left as quickly as he had came.

Their hands were then left to hang loosely in the air before they began to lower, mirroring the frown that began to pull at the pained stretch of their lips. With eyes still locked, they raised a silent conversation between them, worry etched into the eyebrows of Vernon and fear swimming within the murky abyss of Seungkwan’s hazelnut eyes.

“I suppose we should be on our way. Can’t keep him waiting, can we?” Seungkwan whispered meekly, turning to open the door and striding out before Vernon could answer.

 ----                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         
Having featured on the cover of Business Insider’s most eligible bachelors two years in a row, rated #4 and #3 for Forbes 30 under 30 in enterprise technology in both 2012 and 2013 respectively and, finally, rated at #82 in Time Magazine’s Top 100 most Influential people of 2017 – Choi Seungcheol is a worldwide sensation. In just ten years since his appointment as the CEO of Choi industries, Choi Seungcheol’s name has sprouted spores in the international market and has somehow tripled his family name’s fortune thanks to his acclaimed looks and his equally successful legal and illegal businesses. In the past ten years, not one corporation has gone without Seungcheol’s highly accredited name upon their lips nor has any man lived without said name’s influence upon their minds.

With an infinite supply of cash on top of the world’s full trust and sincere admiration, he lives with the well-backed belief that he has the ability to do anything he wants and allows him to keep his primary black market thrills which remained the only memory of his long deceased father.

Mr Choi Jinyoung was, on the surface, a failing used car salesman (wacky inflatable dancer and all) who’s one-hundred-year-old family name had managed to keep him, his son and his wife afloat for many years. In reality, he was the head of the Choi mafia whom was well known to have conducted business in a variety of industries – slave trafficking, sex trafficking, gun trafficking, drug trafficking – he had his finger in a lot of pies and was finding his family to grow exponentially in their success. When Seungcheol took over, he was met with an outcry amongst his father’s closest associates whom doubted his capabilities in following his father’s legacy, this wasn’t improved upon when he decided to kill off many of these associates. Establishing his industrial kingdom was his first step, buying out thousands of promising small businesses (with the help of his advisors) and taking out shares in larger ones. In no time, he was a flourishing young entrepreneur. It only took another year to gain the family’s trust back and soon enough he became the envy of both worlds.

Which, somehow, brings Seungkwan here – having disturbed one of Seungcheol’s important meetings and ultimately compromising the privacy of the family. Facing the dark oak door, entranced by the ragged ‘II’ carved into it.

Nodding to the silent bodyguard outside the door, he announced his and Vernon’s arrival and asked said guard to pass it on to the Boss. While they waited for a response, Seungkwan spared a glance who’s eyes stayed trained on his feet, his hands shaking ever so slightly where they sat in the pockets of his grey plaid slacks, but otherwise remained completely still, oblivious to Seungkwan’s guilt-ridden expression.

The bodyguard soon returned and ushered the two servants into the drawing room, Seungkwan leading with Vernon trailing shortly behind him. The door was abruptly slammed shut behind them and Seungkwan raised his head to lock eyes with those of his Boss.

When one would try to imagine the true personality behind the famous name, they would probably picture the calm, collected, smooth talker that was popularised by his many television interviews or, perhaps, the more rugged, masculine gentleman that had been captured in his numerous magazine editorials. To all who knew him personally, though less than a few did, knew that Choi Seungcheol was nothing more than a cold shell of whatever a ‘human’ could truly be defined as – his organs had been gruesomely ripped out by decades of conditioned training and experimentation conducted by his money-hungry, blood-sucking leeches of parents all in the process of achieving their one lifetime goal: to retire and rely on a successful, loyal son whom would selflessly slave away to achieve their greedy desires and sacrifice himself if the time may come. Despite their efforts, Seungcheol remained a man of his own desires – their experiments only left him cold, riddled with grisly flashbacks and a score to settle. When he turned 16, his parents died in a freak house fire and he alone was left with the fortune, the dealership and the doubtful mafia family. It really is a shame that his parents couldn’t see him now, wise beyond his years and achieving all they had hoped from him even if it were not for them but for himself.

Where brutality is famously said to only take a man so far in life, Seungcheol had employed to take him all the way.

“Seungkwan, you’ve been here five years, I really would have hoped you’d have learnt by now.” Seungcheol chuckled, turning from the painting he’d been ‘admiring’ for the first minute or so they’d been in the room, nursing the fine wine glass in his right hand.

“You and me both, apparently I just can’t learn to use a knocker.” Seungkwan replied casually, meeting the gaze of his Boss and long-time friend.

“Hm, I suppose that too is a problem.” He grinned, attempting to stifle his mirth and taking a sip from the wine glass nestled between his middle and forefinger, eyes focused indiscreetly on the distressed expression that took shape in Seungkwan’s face.

“..p-pardon?”

“Oh, I was referring to your little eavesdropping escapades,” he paused, looking for the widening in Seungkwan’s eyes and when satisfied, continued: “I passed it off at first but it really is beginning to get annoying now.”

“B-but how did you..?”

“It’s not the first time you’ve been caught, Seungkwan, what kind of a mafia boss would I be if I didn’t even know what’s happening within my own home? It wasn’t normally a problem but did you have to get the newbie involved this time around?” he tsked, gritting his teeth and nodding his head towards the shaken figure behind him.

Said man squirmed uncomfortably under his interrogating gaze but still bravely opened his mouth ready to speak only to be quickly interrupted.

“So what’s the real reason we’re here?” Seungkwan barked crossing his arms, leaning back on one leg and raising one of his finely groomed eyebrows in question.

“Look, the family’s looking pretty unstable right now. Any minute now it is certain that a rebellion will take place. It is not exactly smart in this kind of political climate to be allowing servants snooping around in the household without having been initiated.” He put it carefully, smoothly as if afraid to light the already burning ember of Seungkwan’s temper. Instead, he was met with a rather crestfallen expression and he felt himself almost feeling sorry for him. Almost.

“You promised.”

“I know, but this was the last straw. You’ve also been recently promoted: 'Choi Family Butler' isn’t exactly a position for a civilian. It’s this or nothing.”

“Forget it, I knew this was coming one day or another. Return Vernon to his duties and we’ll get it over with now.” He shrugged off the pain, stealing one glance at the man still poorly shielded by his back and returning with an illy concealed grin.

“No need, he’ll be getting it too.”

“Why? He’s only been here two months! He’s still on a fucking trial!”

“Calm it, Kwannie. He’s witnessed some very important information and I do not need another scandal,” he sighed, “now, if that’s sorted the family tattooist will be here in an hour. Seungkwan, wait in here explain to him as much as you can before he arrives. Mingyu will be here to assist in the initiation procedures whilst I’m gone.” With that, Seungcheol carefully placed his wine glass on the coffee table and strode out, leaving the two boys to converse on the suede burgundy sofa that would soon be their only comfort in a whirlwind of pain.

As the door was slammed shut and locked, Seungkwan turned to Vernon, “We have a lot to cover.”

\----                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                        
Despite his height advantage over Seungcheol, Mingyu struggled to keep up with the man’s determined stride as he read off his busy Monday morning schedule. Having already helped Wonwoo ‘deal’ with the visitors upstairs, one of which needing multiple bandages and a surplus of pain medication after his left arm was left mutilated by a very angry Seungcheol, Mingyu’s remaining duties were to act as Seungcheol’s private assistant which pretty much entailed following the shorter man around and updating him on any appointments he had – which, in Mingyu’s opinion, were far too densely packed for a moody Monday morning. So it was no doubt a surprise when he was asked to complete the Choi family initiation on Seungcheol’s most trusted friend.

“Sir, who will keep you informed on your schedule?” They had stopped to chat in the luxurious living room which was situated at the front of the house and was accessed via the either the front door or the lavish winding staircase which acting as the centrepiece of the room. His Boss stood at the coat hanger, shrugging on a navy, paisley embroidered Balmain blazer whilst Mingyu stood with a tablet in hand at his command.

“I hardly need you to do that, doesn’t that tablet contain all the information for today?”

“Well...yes but-”

Seungcheol interrupted, “Then I needn’t see the use in you. I can have Joshua read it out in the same way you do or perhaps even Jaebum, since he’s driving me anyway.”

“You’re sure Sir?” Mingyu spoke, carefully laying the sleek black tablet face down on one of the sofas, letting the bold white and crimson logo stand out like a star in the night sky.

“Have I ever been frivolous in my words?”

“I suppose not. I will check in with you after it is done, Sir.” With a curt nod, Mingyu was on his way back to the drawing room, leaving Seungcheol in the living room on his own.

Looking into a large oval mirror which overlooked a slim chest of drawers, Seungcheol adjusted the sleeves of his blazer and combed his hair neatly back into place from where it had been messed up from his improper outburst earlier. With one last straightening of his blazer and after deciding to undo another button of his black dress-shirt, Seungcheol headed to the door. As his hand met the glistening orange amber of the door-handle, however, the door itself shook from the strength of a barrage of angry knocks.

Stunned, Seungcheol’s hand fell loose from the handle. He stared, confused as he had not heard the intercom ring nor had he given permission to buzz anyone in. This would only last for a moment, however, as the knocks began again this time interrupted every so often by the musical accompaniment of the door bell. The cacophony of sounds was enough to cause a violent brain hemorrhage for the Choi and before he knew it he was yanking open the door and shouting into the face of a young man.

“That’s very kind of you, but I’m currently in quite a hurry and so can’t afford to spend the time necessary for you to cut my intestine open and find that many rocks to fill it with. I do appreciate the offer, though. Now, is there anyone who can find me Mr Choi?” The man replied politely, round feminine eyes filling with amusement and thin pink lips curling into an adorable little grin.

Seungcheol coughed, clearing his throat before replying in the same manner. “I suppose that would be me.” he returned the man’s cheeky smile with his own poor attempt, making him come off more pained than cheery and before long the sentiment became too unnatural to bare and he let it fall from his face before the man even had a chance to reply.

If one had enquired to Seungcheol the job of said man before he had opened his mouth, he would have certainly replied ‘fallen angel’ for, as childish as it sounds, the moment Seungcheol had set his sights upon this creature he was sure he’d seen him in a renaissance painting of his as his was the beauty none could achieve via nature nor cosmetic surgery – it was simply ethereal. With hair the shade of an angel’s wing and perhaps just as soft, Seungcheol longed to run his calloused fingers through the overgrown mop – to let them glide through the neat platinum locks and then tug them harshly at the ends just to hear that velvety voice moan his name.

Clearly taking this as a rather threatening act, the pretty boy quickly stuttered out his following statement. “I-I-I was just p-passing by when I n-noticed the state of your windows.” he paused, glancing nervously towards the now grimacing male, gulped, and continued, “In the last twenty or so years, there has been a revolution in windows. Nowadays, every newly-built home has state-of-the-art triple-glazed windows.”

His lips, although thin and small, twisted in ways that were sinful. They were a beautiful ombre red, the centre of his lips being the shade of a cherry red tomato whilst the surrounding area took on a much lighter shade, perhaps closer to pink than red. When he spoke, his lips did not simply move but danced as if they were on a different wave length to the rest of him. They were entrancing. The stutter of his soft voice only added the sensuality of his words – of his dance.

“...This, of course, saves you huge amounts in electricity and heating bills as you are better protected from heat and electricity being lost to the surrounding atmosphere. Being that you live in quite a dated house, these same benefits are not being applied to you causing you to throw potential thousands down the drain.”

Seungcheol didn’t hear any of it, though, as his eyes bore holes into those of the little angel. He didn’t know when he had found himself hopelessly drowning in the depths of those wide, sneaky, crimson red eyes. He felt at home in them, a certain warmth radiating from them as if they were the burning logs for the fire and suddenly he didn’t know whether he was burning up in hell or drowning in the lava of it. Whatever it was, he drew the epiphany that living was far overrated if he could only spend eternity like this – in his own personal paradise.

“Huh.” he uttered, mindlessly.

“Exactly Mr Choi! Lucky for you, however, I just so happen to know a company that will give you the best price on triple-glazed windows. Normally, to get all these windows replaced, it would cost you at least $80,000. With us, on the other hand, it will only cost you $40,000 – that’s 50% off the usual price! And, because I find your situation dreadfully awful, I will take another 25% off as a friendly discount making your grand total just $30,000. How does that sound? Can I sign you up?” the man finished, cheeks flushed and panting.

Despite his facade, Jeonghan knew there was only one answer to his ‘hopeful’ question – yes. He had Seungcheol hook, line and sinker having successfully hypnotised him the moment he’d looked distastefully into his eyes.

“S-Sure, I’ll take it. Let me just fetch my card”

As soon as Seungcheol was out of earshot, Jeonghan let out a shrill scream, jumping up and down in pure ecstasy. He had no idea how he had pulled it, but he sure as hell wasn’t going to back out now. (4, 636)

\----                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
So, after a few months, the first chapter of 'Double-Grazing' is up! 

I hope you enjoy~


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jeonghan regrets.. sort of.

“Damn rich.” he huffed, trotting his way through the magnificent family gardens that guarded the imposing twenty mile driveway. “Thinking they can swear at whoever they please, thinking they can make a man walk twenty miles just because he doesn’t have a car. Fucking pompous bastards.” he paused, taking a quick glimpse at the contract that lay still crumpled in his pale hand, “I suppose I owe them though, how else would I achieve ‘Employee of the Year 2018” he cackled, continuing to wander down the road in a somewhat maniacal manner as he caught himself in a daze.

When he reached the gates, he found himself to be equally as elated and so Jeonghan treated himself to a small taxi ride back to the dealership rather than catching his usual bus – after all, he thought himself deserving of a quick treat seeing as he, despite his co-workers many doubts, had managed to scam Mr Choi Seungcheol himself and he didn’t even have to throw an abrupt ‘summer sale’. He smirked, thinking of Mr Kim’s delighted face when he held up that quadruple 0’d number and the equally as disdainful glares of his fellow con-men. 

Although delighted, it wasn’t as if he didn’t know of his own strength. He was the biggest seller in his small corner shop and had predictably won ‘Employee of The Year’ three years in a row now. If you asked him, the other two Soonyoung and Seokmin, were far from needed in their company – his sales in this quarter alone could quite possibly uphold the company for at least three years more.

Sitting snuggly in the quaint sunshine yellow taxi he’d called off the road, he watched as the mighty Choi mansion faded into the background. “Good-bye Choi fortune, hello company car.” he whispered, a giggle escaping as he struggled in hiding his mirth. The mansion soon disappeared as the car took a sharp corner and he found himself turning around to observe his phone, one arm propped behind his neck and left leg crossed over his right, his guilt disappearing as quickly as the house had.

\----

“Right here Sir?” The taxi-man asked, looking into the dash mirror and meeting the eyes of his customer whom, at the sound of his soft voice, looked up from his candy crush game and smiled, nodding his head. 

“Yep, that’ll be it. How much do I owe you?”

“$35” Shiiiit Jeonghan cursed he’d forgotten the overpriced state of the taxi industry and it seemed to seep without filter into his shocked expression. He schooled it, though, as is the talent of an accomplished salesman and instead smiled whilst he began to dig around desperately in his worn wallet.

“Is everything alright Sir?” asked the taxi-man after it had been a fair few minutes. Jeonghan looked up nervously, handing him two $10 bills. 

“Make it $20?” he pleaded, shining his pitiful red orbs into the face of the aged man. He replied with a dazed nod. “Thank-you.” Jeonghan smirked, before exiting the small car and sauntering his way over to the windowed front of the high-street store. He went to grab onto the brass door handle but suddenly had a change of heart, walking to stand in front of the window instead. He corrected the few platinum hairs that stuck up, arranging them neatly into the fringe style they were in before. He then moved to his black and white pinstripe suit, tugging on the end of his left sleeve so that it lay smoothly on his arm bore repeating the action on the rest of his blazer. He smirked at his reflection, selfishly admiring his own handsome face.

He moved to open the door but was shortly side-tracked due at the sudden notice of the taxi’s reflection, not really surprised the man was still there (he had no idea how long his hypnotism really lasted) he once again met his eyes in the mirror and sent him a cheeky wink. He really did open the door this time, though not without a little sensual wiggle of his hips to please his audience. 

“Yoon Jeonghan, you’re late.” Mr Kim spoke, exactly on time with the door chime.

“Woow that was some physic shit man, how did you do that?”

“We all saw you looking at your own reflection. It’s a window, Jeonghan, not a mirror.” Soonyoung grinned, waving cutely at Jeonghan from behind his desk.

“Whoops, my mistake.” he chortled, returning a grin of equal joy to his light-spirited friend, “Why are you in so early anyway, Jihoon kick you out again?”

Soonyoung, gasped seemingly aghast at Jeonghan’s cheeky suggestion, “He actually made me breakfast this morning, thank you very much.”

“Breakfast? Did he fry the egg on your face?” Seokmin laughed, peaking his head round the show-room door. “Jeonghan, Jeonghan,” he called childishly upon noticing the extra body in the room, running up to him with that Cheshire grin he seemed to have etched permanently onto his face, “have you heard about what happened to Soonyoung’s face?” he giggled, finally coming to a stop 

“No? What happened to-” he paused, noticing the dull pinkish colour in Soonyoung’s left cheek, “SOONYOUNG! What on Earth happened to your face?” he exclaimed, shocked at the mark he’d failed to see beforehand.

“It’s nothing, really. Seokmin’s making it out to be way worse than it is.” Soonyoung replied, opening up a small compact mirror as he inspected the rounded red mark that sat just south of his cheekbone. “Jihoon and I just had a small quarrel.”

“Talk about small quarrel, it was over Eggs Benedict!” Seokmin giggled, slapping his hand on Soonyoung’s desk where he now sat perched.

“Eggs Benedict?” Jeonghan questioned, face showing clear disbelief as his eyebrows furrowed and eyes widened comically.

“Eggs Benedict!” 

“It wasn’t just about Eggs Benedict”

“Okay,” he scoffed, “then Eggs Benedict was the primary perpetrator!”

“Eggs Benedict is not to blame!”

“It was all Eggs Benedict’s fault.” Seokmin ‘whispered’, hand cupped round his mouth as if Soonyoung would suddenly become completely ignorant to his obnoxiously loud voice.

“We’ll see who’s fault it is in a min-”

“Let’s hear it then.” Jeonghan interrupted, hand cradling his face as as he stared at the two quarrelling infants, his eyes semi-hooded and face blank in an expression that could only known as ‘boredom’ and it quickly prompted Soonyoung to explain the situation.

“It’s nothing really, I just scared Jihoon shitless this morning with an awkward back hug whilst he was making the eggs and he sort of, on reflex of course, hit me in the face with his scorching frying pan.” he sighed, rubbing his cheek in painful memory.

“Oh no. What happened to the eggs?”

“Well, naturally Jeonghan, they landed on the floor.” Soonyoung replied, glaring at the man as he failed to acknowledge his morning tragedy for any other reason than to cry over ruined eggs.

“So how does this all relate to you being early this morning?” 

“He kicked me out after I picked it up and protested that it was just a new twist on the classic favourite. That’s why they say never to mess with chefs.” He whined, laying his head on his desk as he did.

“I’ve always known Jihoon to be the most trustworthy of the Yoons.” 

“Only because the older brother is a literal scammer, Seokmin.” Jeonghan smirked, winking in Seokmin’s direction and falling into his nearby desk chair. “Speaking of scammers, you’ll never know who I screwed over first thing this morning.”

“Was it Mr Kim?” 

“He screws me over every morning, Soonyoung.” Mr Kim rolled his eyes, one finely manicured hand planted firmly on his hip as he leaned on the showroom door frame.

“But I thought you liked being screwed.” Jeonghan replied, adding a wink in Mr Kim’s direction to embellish the statement. 

“You tell me Jeonghan, as far as I know this entire town has been swindled into double-glazing by now.” Soonyoung exclaimed, huffing in emotional exertion.

Jeonghan smirked, for what seemed to be the hundredth time this day, and surveyed the expressions of his colleagues and boss. As the silence continued, a palpable tension grew amongst them and soon enough their eyes mirrored the atmosphere as they began to feel a great announcement coming from their local, self-proclaimed ‘best scammer’. As soon as he became assured that his statement was going to achieve maximum impact, he started, garnered the increased attention of the small office.

“Mr Kim, I hope you’ve got suitable funds put aside for my company car,” he winked, “Choi Seungcheol lives quite far into the countryside, after all.”

They shared a collective gasp, staring wide-eyed at the sheer cheek of the man.

Soonyoung was the first to break the silence, “Lies. Not even you can pull the Choi Seungcheol.”

“Wanna see the paperwork?” he laughed, holding it up as if to prove his point.

“But how..?” Seokmin finally snapped out of his trance, staring at the paper and then grabbing it out of his hand to check it himself.

“I just showed up. I told him about the windows and he just agreed, it was like any of my other customers.”

“Wow,” He breathed, pointing out the large number scribbled in big, bold Sharpie numerals to Soonyoung before said man promptly snatched it off of him to read it through himself. “You really are the best scammer, how’d you manage to wrangle that?”

“I’ve told you before: my looks are simply irresistible to both men and women.” He laughed, moving his hand to cover his mouth in mock bashfulness.

“Jeonghan,” Mr Kim spoke suddenly, drawing attention to where he now stood instead of leaned at the front of the room, “Can I see you in my office for a minute or two?”

Jeonghan nodded in response before flashing a smile at his colleagues and following the pretty male through the showroom and into the quaint little room in the back that Kim Kibum lovingly named his ‘office’.

Said ‘office’ was about the size of a janitor's closet. Originally having intended for the place to be a simple storage room, it was by no means big enough to fit the compulsory desk and chairs of an office and instead Kibum had to resort to more original plans. Enlisting the help of Jeonghan, they watched as Kibum’s boyfriend enacted his plans and renovated the room to become more of a private lounge than a place of business. With cotton candy pink walls, a small inexpensive chandelier, a mounted T.V and a luxurious looking leather sofa that curled around the back wall – Kibum’s ‘private office’ became an employee playground that was frequently taken advantage of during times of customer drought and despite his best efforts, not even his receptionist feared being called into that room for a classic Kibum scolding.

“Reporting for my scolding sir.” Jeonghan announced upon closing the door behind him, playfully saluting as he did. Kibum sent him a short glare in response, gesturing towards the couch before reaching for the fridge that lay nestled in the farthest corner of the room.

“I can’t believe you.”

“Can’t believe what?” Jeonghan yawned, snuggling into the cushions on the couch where he lay.

“I can’t believe you did that.”

“What’s with you guys? Can nobody in this damn company just say something straightforwardly?” Jeonghan huffed, “Is it about Jinyoung? Because I swear he just got interested on his own, you know me being the literal Asian reincarnation of-”

“Grace Kelly, I know.” Kibum smiled, lifting his head from the fridge to see the younger man grinning into thin air. “I was talking about Seungcheol, actually.” 

“Ohhh! To be honest, even I was a little nervous about his response.” he laughed, “who knew the rich prick would be like all the others? Gullible asshole.” 

“Jeonghan!” Kibum stressed, clearly panicked.

“What? I don’t care what the magazines say, he’s an idiot. Perhaps a smarter idiot than the rest of those ignorant businessmen but an idiot nonetheless.”

Kibum took a deep breath to compose himself and then set about trying to level with the stubborn fool. “He may be an idiot but he’s a rich idiot. Men with money are dangerous enough, think about the consequences of messing with a stupid man with money.” he scoffed, “Not to mention all of the rumours surrounding his illegal activities. Jeonghan, no business man keeps a private army on his demand. He’s practically a dictator at this point.”

“Oh please Kibum, no man is rich enough to pay off the law. I’ll be fine, promise.”

“Don’t oh please me Jeonghan! If I say goodbye to you I say goodbye to my 5 bedroom house, I say goodbye to my poodle and I say goodbye to my gorgeous chiselled boyfriend!” he whined, face-palming as he tried to calm down, “this isn’t just about you.” 

“It’s always nice to know you care about me.” Jeonghan pouted, looking at Kibum from where he lay with his head perched on a furry pink leopard print cushion.

“Now’s not the time for a tantrum, we need to fix this. As long as you haven’t paid the contractors we should be in the clear. You couldn’t have done that in a twenty minute journey, surely.” he chuckled, looking towards Jeonghan expectantly. The younger avoided his gaze however, even turning around to face the back of the couch. “I cannot fucking believe you.” He suddenly yelled, kicking the couch Jeonghan laid on.

“I’m sorry!! I thought you’d be happy!!” he whimpered, words distorted by the impact of each kick.

“Regardless of that you know you need to clear every order with me before you even think of contacting the contractors! You greedy prick.” Kibum panted, slowing his kicks.

“So what do we do now?” Jeonghan pleaded, peaking over his shoulder to face his fuming boss who now stood leaning against the wall, his head in his hands.

“You go there, you apologise, you refund him.” He spoke, not moving from his position.

“What?” The blonde asked, pulling his head out of the cushions and sitting up.

“You’re excused.” 

The blonde froze, the words Kibum had spoken earlier only now just registering in his mind. Robotically, he stood up from the couch and left the small room, tottering his way into the showroom as he calculated the meaning of that sentence. He would have to apologise to a customer – a rude, over-confidant, obnoxious customer at that who was selfishly rich enough to cure poverty in multiple places in the world and, if his rumours proceeded him, was the cause of said poverty in many more. He suddenly lost his balance, collapsing to the floor as the weight of his broken pride crushed him. How was he going to do this? 

….refund him.” Refund him? How was he meant to get his company car now? As if struck by a vision, he could see the image of it fading out before his eyes, the smell of it’s exhaust filling up his nostrils as it sped away from him.

“My company car!” he wept, reaching his arm out in front of him as if he were able to stop it from escaping him, “Don’t leave! I’ll take care of you! I promise!” 

“Should we.. you know.. help him?” Seokmin whispered, staring at the shaking body which lay in front of them.

“Seokmin we’ll both be clawed to death if we interfere with this. Let’s just let it blow over.” 

“..okay.”

Seokmin and Soonyoung could only hopelessly watch on as their idol had a loud and mentally exhaustive meltdown in front of their eyes. 

\----

“Ah so that’s why you were stressed.” Seokmin laughed, sliding his arm around Jeonghan’s shoulders.

They were currently crowded around Jeonghan’s desk at the front of the reception room, Dino had begrudgingly prepared him a cup of coffee to settle him the moment he’d arrived at work and slowly over the last two hours with the help of Soonyoung’s careful fanning and Seokmin’s comforting murmurs, Jeonghan had managed to recover from his meltdown. He’d painfully recounted his story to the three men and whilst one didn’t seem to understand, the two sellers guiltily consoled him.

“When you dared me to do this I wasn’t expecting him to be so damn troublesome. This is all your fault.” Jeonghan crossed his arms, pouting as he avoided his friends’ gazes. “I’ll never get that company car now.”

“What a pity.” Dino interjected from the other side of the room, face deadpan as he looked over at the rarely-so-messy Jeonghan, “It’s not their fault and even if it is you still accepted the dare due to your foolishly competitive spirit.”

Jeonghan frowned. He supposed Dino was right but that didn’t make his situation any better. He didn’t want to apologise but he loved his job, his colleagues and even his fussy boss. He couldn’t imagine working anywhere else. 

“What if you just.. don’t apologise?” Soonyoung said casually, continuing to fan Jeonghan’s face as he did. Said man snatched the fan out of his hand and hit him over the head, passing it back to him afterwards as he resumed his wob.

“You are no longer qualified to call Seokmin stupid, Soonyoung. Your privilege is revoked.” 

“No, no. Hear me out here. If you re-visit Seungcheol and swindle him into believing the windows are worth it, you may even be able to sell some more to his other properties. Maybe you could even offer to upgrade him to triple-glazing.”

“That doesn’t make any sense. First of all, he’s already bought the windows from me without properly reading our promises so it technically isn’t my fault if it goes wrong. He can’t sue me for that. Secondly, if he’s as scary as they say I wouldn’t even be able to convince him of that in the first place. Thirdly, I’ve already sold him triple-glazing and fourthly why would I want to sell him more crap? The whole problem for Key was that I had sold it to him in the first place.” He sighed, finishing his monologue and groaning in frustration.

“Okay but listen for second – what is the one thing Key cares more about than his five bedroom house, poodle and gorgeous chiselled boyfriend?”

“His parents?” Dino suggested.

“Nope. Money.” Soonyoung answered, his eyes thinning into crescents and hands rubbing against each other menacingly as he schemed.

Jeonghan rolled his eyes, “I got $20,000 off of that deal, Soonyoung. I don’t think he cares about money much right now.”

“Come on Jeonghan, who’d give up all that for a measly $20,000? If it were say.. $100,000 he’d be singing a very different tune, for sure. Plus if you play your cards right he could keep everything – the money, the family, you’ll probably even get your company car. That’s a win-win situation for everyone!”

“Alright, say I go there and swindle him out of more money. Who’s to say he won’t change his mind later on and sell us off as slaves?”

“Aha! My dear Grace Kelly, you’ve always said you’re popular with men and women, yes?”

“Yes..” Jeonghan replied pensively, his voice drifting off the longer he dragged it.

“So seduce him!” he shouted, “You’re a fox when it comes to the nightclub so just work a bit of that magic on him. Make him hungry for you and then keep him on a leash. He won’t harm something he thinks he has a chance with.”

“And you’re sure on this?”

“Completely.” He beamed, “And, for just 20% of your fore-coming bonus, I will offer complete protection in your endeavours.”

Jeonghan rolled his eyes, again, “I’ll be fine on my own, Soonyoung. I’ll get that bugger Choi Seungcheol and make him love me.”

\---- 

Seungcheol stirred from sleep in a fit of sneezes, his body jerking roughly from his ash grey sheets as each snot-filled blast shook his body. When he was finally able to calm the reaction, he sniffed, loudly and powerfully and the room once again quaked with sound though this one, disgustingly, was far more liquidy. His body slowly grew accustom to it’s new state of being, his eyes – after being stretched and rubbed by his calloused hands – widened from their sleepy slits and focused on the slender body that faced him.

“Joshua.” he greeted, recognising the large, feline eyes of his account – or financial advisor if you were to ask the man himself.

“Seungcheol.” He began, only to be interrupted by a long, hearty yawn.“I can see you’ve enjoyed your 12 hours worth of sleep.” his lips stretching painfully in a form somewhat reminiscent of a smile. 

“Speaking of sleep, I can’t seem to think of how I got here nor what happened in the hours before I got here.”

“Does this jog your memory?” Joshua asked, extending his wrist towards his Boss before bunching up his sleeve to show off the familiar Choi Family symbol – ‘II’, the Roman numeral for ‘two’ and a representation of his loyalty to the second generation of the Choi Family. Seungcheol experienced a sudden jerk in his memory, as if it had just been jump-cabled in the way that a car engine would. He remembered ordering Mingyu to carry out the first of these tattoos on his staff and, although hazy, he remembers answering the door and talking to someone. He remembers being entranced by something and although he isn’t sure what, it leaves a fiery feeling in his stomach and emotions akin to admiration lend themselves to the memory. 

“I remember that. So Mingyu managed to complete his task?” 

“After we found you blacked out in front of the door, Mingyu decided to carry on the orders given to him before you were supposed to leave. Every member of your live-in staff now has one.”

“My regrets, Joshua. I know you came here as nothing more than an accoun- financial advisor, you shouldn’t have been wrapped up in all this. I should have monitored the senior province managers more closely. I could have prevented this.” Seungcheol scolded himself, almost feeling guilty for his actions. Almost.

“Relax, I’ve wanted to be part of the family for a while now anyway. You guys are my family after all.” Joshua smiled, warmly this time.

“Now, it’s exactly because we’re family that I have to confront you on this.” He paused, standing up and walking to one of the bay windows which faced the front gardens and driveway, “Why on Earth have you bought some village scammers’ fucking triple glazed windows when you are fully aware that this is new building?”

Seungcheol was left stunned, processing the information as he got up and joined Joshua where he stood. There, next to his right garage, sat two blue vans each with their back doors open and a multitude of men in white overalls milling around them, chatting and laughing. Seungkwan, his Butler, weaved in and out of the small groups with a silver platter in hand filled with biscuits whilst the newbie, Vernon, trailed after him with a silver platter of his own that carried tea instead.

“Joshua, I need you to get to the bottom of this.” He spoke, calmly with a slight bite in his tone. “To my knowledge, I have not purchased any triple-glazed windows.”

Joshua turned, nodded and exited promptly. Not a word more exchanged between them.

Once the door was shut, Seungcheol proceeded to choose his wear for the day, his careful picking backed by the faint sound of overjoyed laughter that came from the hallway. Joshua was apparently enjoying his job, for once. -8,550 (3,918)


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It seems jeonghan can't stop making mistakes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Bit of violence in this one but we finally introduce my main man Heechul. His character is so quirky, I kind of wanted to base him off of that guy from Princess & the Frog. You know the one.  
> Please leave comments & kudos if you enjoy~

The morning was bleak. The cotton clouds dipped in ink and smeared across the skies in messy, infrequent splotches that absorbed the light and left the land starved. The air was a bitter cold and thick with the repugnant stench that signified the passing of yet another late summer shower. On a morning like this, Seungcheol couldn’t feel any more at home.

The heaters were cranked up, the curtains drawn, the hoodies on and, most importantly, the house was positively plagued with a dull attitude that was shared amongst his housekeepers. Gossip was hardly shared. In fact, hardly a word was murmured amongst his staff. It would’ve been the equivalent of a child’s first circus to Seungcheol if not for the absurd cheeriness of his newest guests – the contractors. 

The noise had began at 7am. 

Come lunchtime, Seungcheol had just about been driven to insanity. The constant banging, drilling, shouting and old man rock music had just about tipped him over the edge. With no other option in  
sight, being that he had put off his breakfast that same morning due to the unbearable atmosphere and that the local takeaways had been threatened one too many times by his men, he reluctantly decided to take his lunch amongst the sleazy, ill-dressed individuals of the town in a nearby four-star restaurant known as ‘Remedies & Rumours.’

It was here that Seungcheol was curiously offered a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. In that strange, mystical little getaway was a booth which stood proudly against the far wall of the establishment. It acted as the ‘main attraction’ being that it was the original inspiration for the business as well as the first installation of it. At this quaint stand, you may ask whatever you wanted for a small price and in return be served the answer to your question. Seungcheol, being the clever little individual he was, immediately steered clear of the place being that he never wanted to chance being scammed again after his latest encounter. 

After his lunch, however, he was greeted by a tall, lanky fellow whom went by the name of ‘Heechul’. Dressed ridiculously in a long, purple, leopard print dinner jacket with matching vest and bow-tie and brandishing a grand, gold capped walking stick with grandiose curls carved into every available space of the dark oak, Heechul managed to stand-out despite his already unusual surroundings. He asked to talk to him, told him he had some information for him. His bodyguards seemed uneasy, but he let him talk nonetheless, even kicking out one of bodyguards to make room. He didn’t sit. But he talked, endlessly.

Heechul’s eyes sparkled with mischief as they talked, his eyebrows performing tricks on his face as they emphasised each and every word, Seungcheol felt entranced by him, “You, Sir, are struggling. I can see that. Something is faster than you, better than you, more handsome than you and is leaving you behind in the dust. This is the first time, isn’t it? Oh! Sir don’t answer that. I know it’s true anyway.” he cackled, waving his staff around as if painting a picture, “He’s beautiful, isn’t he? IS he? He must be if you’re trying that hard to picture him. Or do you not even know his face? Oh! What a pity. You need control in your life, I seeeee.” He cackled again, pulling out the chair previously offered to him and turning it around so that he could sit on it the wrong way round. 

Seeing the opportunity, Seungcheol started, “How do yo-”

“I’ll help you.” He interrupted, leaning so far forward that their noses could almost touch, “If that’s what you would like, of course.” he smiled, crookedly and maintained their distance as if it were some sort of challenge. Seungcheol didn’t move, didn’t even twitch.

“How can you help?”

\----

Sunlight, to a vampire, was not as fatal as folk tales would lead you to believe. In fact, the Yoons loved a Sunny day just as much as they loved a warm night and Jeonghan was certainly not one to break family code. Like a cat, he loved to nap in the hot Summer rays – letting his chalky complexion soak up as much as it could despite pigment never being able to return to it. So, when it came to this particular morning, Jeonghan felt a damper on his Summer spirits that could only make his mood worse as today’s events played out.

Just two days ago when the mornings were still sunny, Jeonghan had made the biggest ‘mistake’ of his window selling career. Having been dared to sell triple-glazing to a gloomy multimillionaire, he’d trudged down this same path celebrating. And now here he was – regretting. For the first time in his miserable eternal life – he regretted. He just wanted a company car of his own to serve as a symbol for all the ten years he’d drilled into making this mediocre company an empire and yet - here he was. 

He could do the cowardly thing and blame his friends for setting him such an unachievable task but that wouldn’t forgive his foolish competitive spirit for following through on it. He should’ve known the extent of his power and yet he hadn’t backed down but instead revelled in it – the challenge, the bet, the chance to prove his worth!

And yet, even as he acknowledges his mistakes, he still refuses to apologise. He still blames Seungcheol for being such a fool (although he completely hypnotised the poor man to the extent to which he doesn’t remember the incident at all) in an effort to rid himself of the blame. So, here he was, ready to use his ill ways to convince said ‘poor man’ to buy multiple more houses full of windows and in the process prevent him from filing a lawsuit that would inadvertently take away his boss’ favourite sugar baby.

Jeonghan once again cursed the rich as he tottered painfully down the long, peach tree filled drive. He clutched his thick blazer along with his briefcase in one hand whilst he soothed his aching back with the other. The initial hill after the iron gate (which he had successfully managed to jump over using a nearby tree) had caused him to hunch over to combat the steep nature of it and in doing so had left him sore in more places other than just his feet. And, as if to add to his pain, his fringe soon became damp with sweat alongside his armpits and shirt collar. Therefore, he was thankful, in a way, when he’d spotted the start of the Choi gardens which, whilst also signifying the beginning of his final stretch, gave him something else to focus on other than his aching feet.

As he stopped somewhere along the pavement to catch his breath, a luxurious-looking black vehicle sped off past him soon followed by two similarly ominous four-by-fours the windows of which so darkly tinted Jeonghan was sure they were breaking the law. He laughed, though, when they all passed him without a hitch seemingly not even worried of the chances of a break in. Or, perhaps, the chances of a man with his kind of looks managing to break in. He thought it was probably far more likely to be the latter considering his ‘weak’ reputation. Still, he took it as more of a compliment than an offence since this ‘weakling’ was about to conquer their boss. Again.

With a little more skip in his step, Jeonghan arrived at the main house in record time. He grinned at the sight of construction workers filling up the usual parking space, their dirty blue vans making a perfect juxtaposition with the luxury cars that accompanied them and thought again that this would play out perfectly – he probably wouldn’t even need the use of his age-old vampiric powers. Though, he wasn’t about to chance it.

After greeting the familiar workers and asking about their wives, sick grandmothers, graduating children and whatnot, he finally worked up the courage to knock at the door and work his window magic. 

Seungcheol sat nursing a wine glass in his until-just-recently bloody office having just arrived home after one of the more irritating moments in his day. At his side, Mingyu stood with a straightened back, his actions almost exactly mirroring those of the morning two days prior – he read out Seungcheol’s busy evening schedule as well as the schedule for the rest of the week.

Seungcheol breathed deeply, attempting to null his aching stomach pain as he pretended to listen to Mingyu list off tomorrow’s schedule. He perked up at the mention of a certain ‘Moon Junhui’ and rolled his eyes, indirectly halting Mingyu’s speech in the progress. 

Taking a wary glance at the couch, Mingyu mustered up the courage to address the elephant in the room, “Boss, pardon me for speaking hastily, but this petty feud needs to end.”

Seungcheol sighed loudly, rolling his eyes and wringing his fingers, “Mingyu, I pay you to guard my body and to keep me informed not to pretend to be my friend. Don’t get involved in any more than you need to, understand?” he replied, giving Mingyu a rather reproachful look from where he sat.

“Apologies,” he bowed, “Would you like me to cancel the meeting?”

“Reschedule it.” he stated, taking another deep breath as his stomach began to start up again, “tell him I have sudden plans within the country and that Wonwoo will go in my place.” 

“But Sir-” Mingyu started, raising his head in slight, visible panic.

“He may just find his way to a promotion through this.” Seungcheol interrupted, standing up and dusting down his slacks, “Bear with it for now, okay?” he smirked, watching the taller out of the corner of his eye subtly freak out.

He chuckled nervously, “What.. do you mean by that?” 

Seungcheol smiled, turning around and sauntering out of his office, “What do you think it means?” he shouted back, his figure long out of sight.

Mingyu let out a breath he didn’t know he had been holding, staring at the closed door. He let his head fall into his hands, the realisation that Seungcheol knew of the closeted relationship shared between two of his closest employees slowly and painfully dawning on him. 

\----

As Seungcheol strolled away from the room, his stomach settled and his mood lighter, a familiar set of knocks met his ears. Quick and harsh, they attacked his poor front door as Seungcheol lazily descended the stairs. “Seungkwan?” he called, peering over the banister and into the living room, “Seungkwan!”he yelled this time, temper flaring up as he got no response. 

The knocks continued, the constant hammering every so often broken up by the musical ring tone of the doorbell. He frowned, the messy tune beginning to give him a headache, “Seungkwan!! Come answer this door!” he shouted again, continuing his slow descent, “why do I even bother hiring you if you just laze about and get into-”

“Stop yelling and come get the door will you?” A familiar voice interrupted, their tone cocky and agitated as if wrongfully inconvenienced.

The tone unnerved him, the carelessness of it in the face of a well-respected man humiliating him and belittling him. Embarrassed, Seungcheol’s head whipped 180 degrees to face the floor-length windows, effectively robbing his attention from the tardiness of his butler. As quickly as it took to meet the enchanting hazelnut eyes that were the roots of his misery, the moment found itself in slow motion as Seungcheol recognised the unforgettable angel of a man that leant cockily through the window. His thoughts immediately resurfaced in his mind, everything from the small moment from two days ago clawing itself back into his conscious mind and forcing him to remember the small-town salesman who had recklessly swindled him in his own home.

Seungcheol knew that this was his time for his revenge. 

Gritting his teeth, he replied as cheerily as possible, “I’ll be there in a moment.”

“Hurry up, old man.” Jeonghan replied, eyes glinting with mirth before turning around and walking swiftly out of sight.

\----

Jeonghan waited patiently as the old man continued his descent at his leisure. He couldn’t imagine what it must be like to work with such an intolerable man. Who did he think he was? How could he have the cheek to shout at his workers like that over such a mundane task as opening the front door? Against a man like that, his little salesman advantage became tremendously useful. Without it, this ‘sales pitch’ would most likely turn into a heated argument of which the only result would be a strange and unsolved disappearance of his body. He shivered, thinking of the multiple horror stories told to him by his colleagues before he had left. One in particular, and Soonyoung’s favourite, originated from a former colleague of his and included a wood chipper and although he is sure Soonyoung went into rigorous, gruesome detail about it – Jeonghan’s mind seems reluctant to dig up the exact memory.

As he began to rake his mind for the smaller details of that affair, one of the two great doors was opened and in it’s absence stood the mighty ‘Choi Seungcheol’.

“Ah, Jeonghan. How nice it is to see you again.” Said man smiled, though the corners of his lips seemed to pull much too high and his eyes, although innocently handsome, possessed a dangerous mirth to them to which Jeonghan couldn’t bring himself to understand. The words themselves sent alarm bells ringing within his mind, however, as to his knowledge all victims of his hallucinations would typically lose their memory of it completely – the only thing remaining being the signed contract which bound them. Though, he supposed, he had not dared to deal with a customer again after tricking them the first time being that he wasn’t 100% sure of the repercussions of his powers. The suggestion of Seungcheol gaining the exact details of their encounter just two days ago caused him to grow queasy – the thought of the consequences of that would follow making him want to physically gag. He scrambled for ideas, painfully aware of the gaze that bore into him more as the seconds ticked on. 

“Any particular reason you’re here?” Seungcheol questioned, arms crossed across his chest as leaned back on the frame of the door, the taut muscle of his upper arms tastefully highlighted by the stretched cotton, “you look as if you need to tell me something.” 

“Oh, I was just here to check up on the workers.” Jeonghan smiled his world-famous real estate smile, using the small-talk to hide the subtle stuffing of his hand into his pocket, “Have they satisfied you thus far?” he asked, shuffling his hand in the deep slack pocket until he grasped the familiar pocket knife.

Meanwhile, Seungcheol grimaced, “They’re quick, yes, but awfully loud.”

“That is the downside of an upgrade.” Jeonghan chuckled, nearly breathing out in relief having felt the deep groove of the blade. Digging his blunt finger nail into the slit, he turned the handle and worked the knife out of it, allowing it open up in his pocket. He slowly pressed his thumb against the tip of it, breath slightly hitching as he felt the cold metal slice into the skin of it. A small droplet of blood bloomed from the cut, the pungent bitter smell of it filling his nose and sending shock waves through his system marking the start of his change.

“Even if they’re not an upgrade?” Seungcheol replied, throwing a quick smirk in the other man’s direction, ready to revel in the misery of a caught fish, only to be met with a quiet, stale and unnerving expression. 

The domineering instinct to attack, drain and kill invaded his senses, overpowering the foul stench of his own life force as his body kicked into survival mode. His sense of smell became heightened, arousing his nose with a cacophony of scents from the surrounding area – from the thick, chemical odor which exuded from the builder’s supplies – all the way to the satisfying smell of crisp pastry that emanated from Seungcheol’s kitchen. He refrained from covering his ears as they too sharpened, a barrage of sounds wider than a human’s hearing range attacking him all at once. Each steady beat of Seungcheol’s heart played like the heavy bass of a club, the rhythmic flow of blood through his veins accompanying it like a slow rock song. His nails grew and sharpened, the tips darkening to resemble those of a predatory animal after taking it’s dinner, his nails resembling claws more closely than human nails. His eyes filled with a dark poppy red, replacing the warm hazelnut that existed before. His fangs followed the motion, growing just a bit sharper but virtually invisible to an untrained eye. He loved this form. He loved the seductress he became, the powers he possessed, the upper hand he had over humans. In a way, it was hypocritical of him; to hate Seungcheol for he wealth and air of superiority and yet to love it when he feels the same way but he was a vampire – these dark qualities were a part of him.

Seungcheol could only watch as the man changed in front of him, the words that had been hanging on the tip of his tongue quickly swallowed down as he attempted to remain composure. From what he could tell, Jeonghan showed nothing out of the ordinary – he continued to stare at Seungcheol, his eyes soulless as if he were looking but not seeing. The outside may not have changed much, well except for the nails, but there were small parts about the man that made him even more irresistible. The subtle stretching of the corner of his eyes to become more feline and feminine, the slight rosying and plumping of his lips that made them all the more kissable, the slight sheen on his skin that made it look so dewy and healthy. This was the man he met two days ago – the man who had swindled him of $20,000 and yet he felt as he usually did he. No instinctive pull, no meaningless infatuation – nothing. 

“What do you mean?” Jeonghan smiled, acting normal as if he hadn’t just changed into – whatever that was – and let Seungcheol view it all. Unless it wasn’t on purpose, he pondered, inspecting the- thing – in front of him.

“I already had triple-glazing.” he tested, his tone careful and borderline nervous, watching what 'it' would do next.

“What? That isn’t possible, I made sure you had double-glazing. You don’t think I would scam you, do you?” he asked, cherry red lips pouting adorably and shimmering red eyes locked firmly on his. They reminded him of a blooming poppy, a flower representing death. He wondered if his eyes were the key to the scam he had inflicted on him just days before.

“Mmm,” he hummed, “and yet here we are. Scammed out of $20,000 for windows I don’t need.” he finished. Smiling a genuine, real smile as he watched the cockiness drain from the man in front of him clearly caught in the act despite his many efforts. 

“What..” he murmured, instinctively looking down at his hands as if to check he had really changed – that his powers really hadn’t worked on the man he feared most. Seungcheol’s smile remained plastered on his face, pride swelling in his stomach as he even managed to resist some kind of supernatural beauty. 

“What? You think you can come back here and swindle me again? You think I’m stupid? That I’ll just fall for it again and again and again? Please, I’ve never been scammed once in my life and I won’t be scammed this time. You’ll pay me back.” He laughed, loud and evil as if he were a comic book supervillain. 

Jeonghan could only watch on, hopeless and confused as he struggled to find out how this had happened – how his powers had failed him this time despite working flawlessly beforehand.

“And what exactly does that entail?” he replied, making an effort to stall for time.

“Just the usual stuff,” Seungcheol began, “you’re pretty so you might do well in human trafficking. To own you for life would be a big privilege, I’m sure.” 

With no other option, other than hand himself over to a creepy old man in his fifties to use how ever he pleases, Jeonghan did the only thing he was capable of: he ran. At Seungcheol’s final word, he turned around and booked it down the driveway. Seungcheol could only stare, astonished.

“Mingyu! Wonwoo!” He shouted, “Come down here and take care of something for me.”

\----

Jeonghan ran down the driveway, leaving the Choi residence far in the background. Even as he reached the end of the Choi gardens, he continued to run, his lungs burning and his breaths laboured as he desperately fought his paling stamina. Finally, in the distance, the sight of glinting metal caught his eye. He’d never been so happy to burn a hole into his retina.

With a newfound burst of energy, he broke out into a wild sprint as if it were his oasis in a country of sand. Behind him, just as he reached the tree he’d use to make his escape, he heard the sound of an engine coming to life and soon enough he felt a car hot on his tale. He scrambled to get his footing on the wide trunk, his improved talons making a useful asset to his climb. The car doors slamming echoed through his mind, nearly throwing him off the branch he now hung from. With his poor physical strength, he struggled to pull himself up – the slow and steady rhythm of footsteps behind him acting as a mocking reminder of his failed 7th grade gym class. 

He huffed as he batted for his masculinity, kicking his legs wildly as if to push himself up even a little bit further. He heard the footsteps still behind him and thus turned his head to greet them. There stood two men dressed in funeral attire – classic black blazers and matching slacks paired with black button down shirts and neat, slicked back hair. He supposed that this was suitable, being that they were probably the ones that handled all of Seungcheol’s ‘business’. Before he could think, a laugh had erupted from his throat and was soon promptly followed by several more. The realisation that he was now Seungcheol’s ‘business’ shocking his brain out of normality. 

The hearty laughs dissipated, followed by sporadic giggles and finally – heart-wrenching sobs. His arms shook where they gripped the branch, where he refused to let go, as if it were his last final connection to the living world. He hands only loosened when the men approached him, yanking his legs to pull him down. When he finally fell, it was with a tear-stained face and aching limbs. His legs buckled beneath him, leaving him to kneel helplessly at the mercy of his perpetrators. 

With wide, terrified eyes, he watched as the shorter took out a gun, mindlessly spinning it around in his hands as if it weren’t a weapon, before locking eyes with him. They were cold, lifeless. Staring into him as if he were less than a human – a monster. Before he knew it, the butt of the gun had been slammed squarely into his temple and the world had faded into black. -12,453 (3,903)


End file.
